When do we use past perfect simple?

1. When we are talking about the past , sometimes when we refer back to an earlier past .

EARLIER PAST ————————————- PAST

2. We use the past perfect ( eg. she had left ) to talk about something which had happend before the past time we are thinking about ( when I called ).

EXAMPLES . We arrieved at the party at 9:00 , but the show had started at 8:00 .

I couldn’t understand why Simon hadn’t returned the books .

THEY HAVE BEEN FLYING ALL DAY .

We form the present perfect contiuous with have/has been + ….ing .

AFFIRMATIVE

NEGATIVE

INTERROGATIVE

I have been working

I haven’t been working

Have I been working?

He/she/it has been

working

He /she/it hasn’t beenworking

Has he been working?

You/we/they have beenworking

You/we/they haven’t beenworking

Have they been working?

CONTRACTIONS

have=’ve have not=haven’t

has=’s has not= hasn’t

WHEN DO WE USE PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS ?

Sentences with present perfect contiuousconnect the present and the past .

We usually use the present perfect continuous to talk about something that started in the past and has been in progress up to the present .

We can say how long with since and for .

We use since when we give the beginning of the time ( for example since Tuesday) .

EXAMPLE . It’s been snowing since Tuesday .

We use for when we give the length of time.

EXAMPLE . It’s been snowing for three days .

2. We use present perfect continuous when an action has been in progress up to therecent past , especially when the action has results in the present .

EXAMPLE . It has been snowing .( Explanation . It isn’t snowing now , but there is snow on the ground .)

REMEMBER!

We use present perfect mostly for finished actions but the results are shown in the present Example . I’ve witten to John , so he knows everything .

We also use the present perfect to say how much or how often.

Example . I’ve traveled to nine countries this year .

2. We use the present perfect continuous ( progressive) mostly for unfinished actionscontinuing up to now . We mostly use it to say how long .

Example . The children have been playing all day .

The present perfect progressive can also be used for longer , more permanentsituations . However , we often prefer a simple present perfect, especially when we are talking about unchanging states rather than actions.

We use Present Simple to talk about

FORMS OF THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS : verb “to be” + ing

A. Moment of speaking . We use present continuous to talk about an activity taking place at the moment of speaking : Example: Please don’t disturb me. I’m trying to work.

B. Current activities . We use present continuous to talk about actions or activities that are taking place over a period of time( even if they are not taking place precisely at the moment of speaking) .

Example : I am readinga very interesting book at the moment. It’s an adventure book. Explanation I am not reading the book at the moment of speaking ; I have started it but I haven’t finished it . I am in the middle of reading it.

C. Temporary situations . We also use present continuous to indicate that an action or activity is temporary rather than permanent .